Tron: Evolution Xbox 360, PS3 Review

If I had to name my top ten favourite films of all time then Disney’s 1982 classic Tron would be up there, and I for one can’t wait to see the upcoming sequel Tron Legacy. As is usual with most big blockbuster movies these days, there is a game to go with it, Tron Evolution, which acts as a bridge between the two films. It fills us in with what has been happening on the grid in the last 28 years, and sets up the story for Tron Legacy.

You play the part of the appropriately named faceless and voiceless Anon, a command monitor program created by Flynn and working with the famed Tron from the original movie. The user Flynn has been frequenting the grid regularly and working with Tron and his own program Clu to oversee the system. Since the first film a new kind of program has evolved, the ISO’s independent programs with their own free will, and whilst Flynn sees this as the future, Clu does not. There is also a virus on the loose, Abraxas, who just wants to destroy and infect as much of the grid as he can. He is your main foe, but there’s more going on than meets the eye.

With a great story that is integral to the Tron universe, and will be referenced in the upcoming film, you’ll feel right at home in the environment, which looks just perfect for fans of the films. You’ll travel though cityscapes, wastelands, temples and more as you progress through the game, most of which is done on foot in third person. Here you’ll find the key to getting around is making use of the environment in a very similar way to parkour. With running along walls, leaping impossible gaps and clinging to ledges you’ll also find it very similar to the Prince of Persia games. This similarity continues with intermittent combat stages. Here you’ll be using your light disc to throw, block and punch. You will get disc upgrades later, which you’ll need to handle different types of opponents. But it wouldn’t be a Tron game without some lightcycle action too, and you’ll find some of that here.

Every now and again you’ll get a vehicle stage to further the story; sometimes it’s lightcycles, sometimes it’s light tanks, but both make a nice break from the on-foot action. Whatever vehicle you’ll be driving though the aim is always the same, get from point A to point B in one piece. As a lightcyclist you’ll just have to avoid crashing or falling into oblivion. But in a tank things are more confrontational, taking out other tanks, ground troops and swooping air attacks along the way. All three stages of game are pretty basic and generic though, albeit done competently, but they do blend together well, and don’t feel disjointed as some games that try to mix gameplay styles do. In all the single player game lasts six hours or so.

The online multiplayer is pretty basic. There are only four maps, with versions of the standard deathmatch, team deathmatch, capture the flag and domination modes. The good thing about it is that two of the four maps are nice and big, allowing the use of lightcycles and tanks, which really gives you a good feeling of the films. The other smaller maps may not have the epic movie feel to them, but they’re still quite good fan, jumping around, wall running, and dishing out damage with your disc. All your disc upgrades earned in the single player game can be used in the multiplayer, and with plenty of upgrades to get, it can make for some chaotic action. It’s a shame that you don’t get many maps, it would’ve added a lot to the longevity of the game.

As movie tie-ins go there’s a lot worse out there, but there are a lot better ones too. Considering the subject matter they could have done something really good. It’s a competent enough game but could have been so much more, if you fancy something like Prince of Persia though it’s definitely worth a rental, and if you loved Tron and can’t wait for the new film then you really have to give it a go, if only just for the story.